The 'F2K' Bug...
Written: Jun 18 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: 'Rhapsody In Blue'
Cons: Celebrity intros
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| thornhill's Full Review: Fantasia/2000 |
I missed 'Fantasia 2000' when it played on IMAX screens and finally caught up with it on Friday night. I think watching the film on an IMAX may have enhanced the experience considerably. 'F2K' is good, but it is a mixed bag, not really worthy of comparison to the original.
The original 'Fantasia' is a classic. It is more than just dancing mushrooms. It is a blend of image and music, dreamed up by Walt Disney, that is consistently successful. 'Fantasia' was one of Walt Disney's dreams and it is beautifully realized. As noted in 'F2K', Disney envisioned the film as a constantly evolving, changing presentation. Some segments would stay, others would be added in every edition. There was talk at one point of creating segments to the music of the Beatles.
'F2K' took 60 years to arrive. It is consistently less successful. Some of the segments work, some don't. Unfortunately, the filmmakers draw unnecessary parallels between the two editions, calling more attention to the faults of 'F2K'.
Each segment is introduced by a celebrity. A big mistake. None of the celebrities seem to have any connection with the piece of music that they introduce. Why are they there? Penn and Teller's introduction is longer than some of the music. Each segment is also thematically similar to a segment in the original. Instead of replacing 'Night on Bald Mountain' with a Beatle's song or a piece of African tribal music, we experience a very similar piece of music illustrated with the Sprite. 'Pomp and Circumstance' stars Donald Duck in the marketing/slapstick portion of the program that closely resembles the purpose of 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' starring Mickey Mouse. 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' is the only segment that returns from the original. Dancing hippos are replaced by dancing flamingos. The new film opens with a piece of abstract images set to music, much like the original. The creators didn't spend a lot of time rethinking the idea or concept of the new film.
However, they did seem to devote a lot of time to the individual segments. Each segment has a distinct look using just about every animation technique available. 'Carnival of the Animals' is a very brief segment depicting dancing flamingos and a yo-yo. The segment was created with lush watercolor paintings, giving it an old-fashioned quality. 'The Steadfast Tin Soldier' was created with computer animation, bringing each toy to life. 'Pomp and Circumstance' is typical Disney animation, depicting the story of Noah's Ark as seen through the eyes of Donald Duck.
My favorite segment is the most successful blend of music and image. Gershwin's 'Rhapsody In Blue' is played against a story of four New Yorkers as they go about their day. The animation style is adapted from the caricatures of Al Hirschfeld's drawings. His drawings ARE the 1940s. A beautiful piece of music that is set to brilliant drawings. This segment alone is what 'Fantasia' is about and is reason enough to see the film.
I hope that future editions will incorporate a wider variety of music. The classical music is beautiful, but our world is growing and diversifying.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
thornhill
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Member: Matthew Peddecord
Location: Venice, CA
Reviews written: 291
Trusted by: 56 members
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